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LIBRARY OF CONGRESS. 

Chap. J3M Copyright No... 

Shelf__B_£__. 



UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. 



I 



Divine Healing 



AS TAUGHT BY 

REV. JOHN ALEX. DOWIE. \~& 



REFUTED. AND HIS WORK EXPOSED 

BY 
RE"V. S. RICE. 



PRICE, 



Single Copy 25 Cents. 

Twelve Copies $1.75. 

One-Hundred Copies $10.00. 



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Copyrighted by Rev. S. Rice, 1896. 



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OF OOHORMi 



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INTRODUCTION. 



In the past few years a widespread interest has been created in 
the subject of Faith Healing. Whether this is an advantage to the 
cause of Christ is extremely questionable, when we consider that by far 
the greater part of the agitation is by extremists and fanatics. It is to 
be regretted that nearly all the teaching from the press and pulpit is 
by this class of teachers. An occasional article in the papers, or a short 
chapter in a book may be found treating the subject scripturally, 
while the country is flooded with books and papers by the wildest 
fanatics. 

It is a matter of surprise that in this city of Chicago, where 
there has been a 

CRAZE ON THE SUBJECT 

for two or three years, the ministry and religious press should be so 
quiet. The subject is either not noticed or treated lightly while the 
education of the public is left to these extremists. Hundreds and 
thousands of the people of this city, (and it is probably so of other 
cities,) have never read an article or heard a sermon on the subject 
except from this source. They are not aware that these extreme 
views have so little foundation in scripture, that 

NOT A SINGLE ORTHODOX CHURCH 

in Christendom has, in its discipline or confession of faith, endorsed 
them, and that no standard author in any of these churches can be 
found that support these views. 

Says Daniel Steele, D. D., in his new book entitled " Half Hours 
with St. Paul," " We can but regard the modern eager desire for 
the gifts of the Spirit, instead of the graces of the Spirit, comprised 
in that charity (I Cor. xiii), which has been aptly styled ' the 
greatest thing in the world,' as a sign not of real spiritual progress, 
but rather of 

DECLINE IN THE DIVINE LIFE. 

St. Paul, after a full description of these extraordinary gifts in I. Cor. 
xii, gives this command: 'but desire earnestly the greater gifts. 
'And a still more excellent way I show unto you.' He then pro- 



(2) 

ceeds to give a panegyric of charity, or love, as that eternal principle 
without which all gifts are worthless; a principle superior in quality 
and dignity to all other cardinal Christian graces, and therefore in- 
finitely superior to those miraculous gifts which may exist in the 
absence of love. (Matt. 7: 22-23). 

Says John Wesley: ' Many have had the gift of faith, who thereby 
cast out devils, and yet, will at last have their portion with them. ' 

To prefer gifts to that fullness of love which St. Paul eulogizes, 
is to recede from the highest spirituality, if not to fall from grace. 

These gifts were attended by various extravagances, excesses 
and fanaticisms which gave St. Paul much solicitude. I have been 
pastor of fifteen churches, and I thank God that none of them was 
so disorderly and trying to my patience as the church of Corinth, 
where the extraordinary gifts of the Spirit were fully bestowed, must 
have been to St. Paul — ' Wrangling over Paul, A polios, and Cephas, 
running after false teachers, full of envying, strife and divisions, 
carnal, walking as men, harboring an incestuous person, without 
discipline, degrading the L,ord's Supper into a feast of appetite and 
drunkenness, giving to pastor Paul constant sorrow and anxiety — 
the Corinthians needed miracles to give them a respectable name; 
and they so abused miraculous gifts by jealousy and contention, that 
they turned their Sabbath assemblies into cabals of men and women, 
singing, praying, shouting, prophesying pell-mell without order or 
decency.' 

Hence I have never offered a prayer for the restoration of the 
charisms, or extraordinary gifts. Following the apostle to the Gen- 
tiles as a guide, I have found the more excellent way, the way of 
love, and I am supremely blest. 

Though the apostle to the Gentiles, on rare occasions, exercis- 
ed the gift of healing, he never gave it any prominence in his 
practice, and never mentioned it in his recorded sermons. His only 
mention of it in his epistles is to relegate it to the rear of the beau- 
tiful procession of the Christian graces, the fruits of the Spirit." 

Again the same author says:" There are 
GRAVE PERILS 
attending the doctrine that the atonement conditionally covers all 
sickness as it does all sins. It is perilous to read more into Divine 
promises than the Spirit of inspiration intended. 



(3) 

I heard William Miller read into prophecy the second advent 
in 1843; an d i n l8 44 I heard him express his regret for his mistake, 
and the wish that he could 'get a peep at God's clock and set his 
watch by it.' His misinterpretation of the bible may not have sub- 
verted his own faith in God, but it utterly destroyed the faith of 
many of his weaker disciples. 

In like manner, many have been assured that the exercise of 
the grace of faith would heal their sickness, to be 

BITTERLY DISAPPOINTED IN THE DYING HOUR. 

This is, to my mind the worst feature of the delusion of Divine 
Healing as it is taught in our day. The sick are often trusting for a 
cure while steadily approaching the gate of death. They are taught 
to insist that they are healed, and to regard all the symptoms of 
sickness as the devil's counterfeits to shake their faith. Thus they 
do till some kind friend informs them that they will die in a few 
hours. Then they exclaim, as did one of my neighbors, 'whom 
can I trust now?' That must be a dangerous delusion which is liable 
to bring the supreme test of faith in the hour of supreme weakness. 
I never before fully appreciated the propriety of the following peti- 
tion in the prayer-book committal service at the grave: 'Thou 
most worthy Judge eternal, suffer us not, at our last hour, for any 
pains of death to fall from thee! ' The only safe instruction is to 
teach the sick to pray with an if — 'if it be thy will, O God, restore 
my health; if it be not thy will give me grace to endure my sickness 
and victory over the fear of death through Jesus Christ ! ' I can 
not state in a better manner the whole subject of healing in answer 
to prayer than to relate this overheard dialogue between two little 
girls, while President Garfield was lying mortally wounded: ' I be- 
lieve the president will get well, so many people are praying for 
him, ' said one of the girls. 

' I doubt it, said girl No. 2.' 

Then, replied No. 1, 'you don't believe God answers prayer, do 
you?' 

No. 2. ' Oh yes, I do; but sometimes he answers 'yes 'and some 
times no.' " 

The reader will understand that I am not opposing the scriptural 
teaching that the ' ' prayer of faith shall save the sick, " for God will, 
and does answer prayer as well for this as other things. 



(4) 

No doubt there is a much needed reform along this line. We 

do not "Carry everything to God in prayer " as we should. We 

have too much faith in doctors and medicine and not enough in God. 

But such a reform will not be hastened, but greatly hindered by such 

FANATICAL AND EXTREME TEACHING 

as Dr. John Alex. Dowie and his co-laborers are giving in this city. 

Neither do I undertake to prove that there have been no cases of 
healing in answer to prayer in Dr. Dowie' s work. It would be 
strange if there were not, among all the good people that throng the 
place. I believe that hundreds of people are restored to health every 
day in answer to prayer, and some of them miraculously, it may be, 
that never heard of Dr. John Alexander Dowie or his work. 

Then great faith, and even miracle-working faith, is not saving 
faith. ' ' The devils believe and tremble." And Jesus himself says: 
" Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophe- 
sied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? 
and in thy name done many wonderful works? And then will 
I profess unto them I never knew you; depart from me, ye that work 
iniquity." Matt. 7: 22-23. 

John Wesley in his notes on these verses says — ' ' so that even 
the working of miracles is no proof that a man has saving faith." 
Also in his comments on I. Cor. 13: 2, John Wesley says: "And 
though I have the gift of prophecy — of foretelling future events, 
and understand all the mysteries both of God's word and providence, 
and all knowledge of things divine and human, that ever any 
mortal attained to, and though I have the highest degree of miracle- 
working faith and have not this love, I am nothing." 

All are familiar with the wonderful 

MIRACLES PERFORMED BY THE SORCERERS AND MAGICIANS 

as recorded in Exodus 7th and 8th chapters. They performed for 
a time, exactly the same miracles that Moses did. 

After three years experience among the people attending Dr 
Dowie' s services, and living all the time in the neighborhood of his 
operations, I am free to testify of the work in Chicago, as Dr. Chap- 
man did of it in Oakland, Cal., when he said, "these alleged healings 
are far from satisfactory to the spirit of sincere and honest enquiry. 
They are usually incomplete and temporary and many times decide- 
edly questionable." 



(5) 

Here is an illustration of this point. On one occasion when I 
was present, two young ladies testified in a testimony meeting on 
healing. One said that she came there with one leg four inches 
shorter than the other and wearing a built-up shoe, costing thirty 
dollars. That she had discarded the shoe though she was not yet 
cured but expected to be. The other testified to the same difficulty 
and pointing to the wall, where a large number of shoes, crutches, 
and suchlike were displayed, said, " I am healed, and there is my 
shoe on the wall.' ' But I noticed she limped quite a good deal as 
she left the room. 

Now here were two of those " implements of torture," as Dr. 
Dowie calls them, displayed as witnesses to healing, while the evi- 
dence was before us that it was not true. How many more of them 
could be accounted for in the same way, I know not. 

Quite frequently persons testify to having been in the "homes" 
for weeks and sometimes for several months and gradually getting 
better. What proof have we that this might not have occurred at 
their home or at a hospital or sanitarium? 

I do not see that Dr. Dowie' s work, so far as healing is con- 
cerned, has any pre-eminence over 

SCHLATTER'S OR CHRISTIAN SCIENCE. 

^Equally as much is claimed by one as the other. 

Schlatter does not believe in Christ as Divine, and " Christian 
Science " is the "science " of the devil. 

I believe in God's ability and willingness to heal in answer to 
the prayer of faith, according to James 5:15, when it is his will, and 
will best answer his purpose; but I do not believe that all sickness is 
the direct work of the devil and positive evidence of Divine displeas- 
ure, and that, as Dr. Dowie says, "sickness can never be the will of 
God," and therefore, it is his will always to immediately heal 
every case. I do not believe that all sick persons are necessarily un- 
holy and sinful, and that they are responsible necessarily for their 
sickness. 

First. — The foundation stone in the whole fabric of this 
teaching is erroneous and absolutely false and misleading. 

It teaches that bodily healing is as fully provided for in the 
atonement of Christ as the pardon of sins or the purification of the 
heart, which, of course, implies physical perfection. 



(6) 

I believe the atonement reaches the whole man so that he is 
fully redeemed, but that the body will not be fully restored until the 
resurrection. Abundance of grace is provided in this life to tri- 
umph over all the consequences of sin, not always by deliverance 
from them, but victory in them. 

"my grace is sufficient for thee." 

I take the liberty in this connection to use the following private 
letter from Rev. J. W. Hill, D. D., of the Central Ohio Conference, 
M. E. Church, and who lives at Ada, Ohio. 

I do this because it contains a clear, concise and scriptural state- 
ment of the whole subject, because it comes from a great bible stu- 
dent, and a writer that is widely known, and because of the deep re- 
gard I have for Dr. Hill, he having been my pastor for many years. 

Ada, O., December 21, 1895. 

Dear Brother Rice — Your letter at hand, and finds us in 
usual health, I have been pleased to read your weekly reports of 
evangelistic work. Glad the Lord has opened an effectual door to 
you; also that your work is prospering. With regard to Dowie, we 
are hearing much. Ada has been quite excited by reports from 

those who have visited him. Mr. and Mrs. have been to Dowie 

and they are both very enthusiastic advocates of Divine Healing, and 
report that Dowie is performing miracles — every thing but raising 

the dead. They have canvassed Ada for victims, and sister is now 

at Chicago for repairs under Dowie. I am thoroughly disgusted with 
the whole thing as carried on by Dowie and Schlatter and all others 
who open up a shop and send out their flaming advertisements to 
induce people to flock to them for healing. I know God has power 
to heal all diseases and Ibelieve there are cases of veritable healing, 
but my observation is that genuine cases are rare. The vast 
majority of them lack the Divine stamp. There is no doubt, but any 
man who has cheek enough to pose as a faith healer, can find victims, 
and there is no doubt, but any man in whom the people have faith, 
can relieve hundreds of nervous hypochondriacs and hysterical cases 
where mind cure is all that is needed. 

No man is more willing to accept of any case that bears the 
unmistakable credentials of Divine healing than I, but the subject 
has been greatly abused by fanatics and impostors until many good 



(7) 
people are thoroughly disgusted. The extreme ground taken that 
sickness is as fully provided for in the atonement as sin, is untenable. 
To say that no one has any right to be sick, is to charge all sick folks 
with blamability . According to the theory just named no one has any 
right to be sick and is guilty of criminal neglect of Divine provision; 
a position which condemns many of the best people that ever lived, 
such as Dr. Sheridan Baker, Miss Jennie Smith,St. Paul, and others 
equally worthy of mention. There is no doubt but sin has opened 
the door for the introduction of all human suffering, but to say that 
the devil is the immediate cause of all sickness or affliction, is not 
supported by the word of God, nor by human observation. Under 
the Divine administration afflictions are employed as corrective agen- 
cies by which God cultures and disciplines his erring children. The 
devil has no power to afflict any of God 's children without the Divine 
permission, which will not be granted except for a benevolent purpose, 
which is always consonant with the highest good of the afflicted. Such 
were the afflictions of Job, who regarded his suffering as from the 
Lord. "The Lord gave and the Lord hath taken away, blessed be 
the name of the Lord," James V:II, "Ye have heard of the patience 
of Job and have seen the end of the Lord, that the Lord is very pitiful 
and of tender mercy." Take Psalms 119. "It is good for me that I 
have been afflicted, before I was afflicted I went astray, but now 
have I kept thy law, " again, "I know,0 Lord, that thou in faithful- 
ness hast afflicted me." Verses 67, 71, 75. See also II. Cor. 
4: 17-18. <l For our light affliction which is but for a moment worketh 
for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory. " This 
text teaches clearly that afflictions, under the sanctifying grace of 
God are ministries of the highest good, that they enhance our future 
glory greatly, fitting and lifting us to a far more exceeding and 
eternal weight of glory than we could otherwise have attained. 
Rom. 8-18 "For I reckon that the sufferings of this present 
time, are not worthy to be compared with the glory that shall be 
revealed in us." This text involves the same principle. Instead of 
afflictions being an evidence of Divine displeasure, they are just the 
contrary. "For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth and scourgeth 
every son whom he receiveth * * * But if ye be without 
chastisements whereof all (God's children) are partakers, then are ye 
bastards and not sons. "- No chastening for the present seemeth to be 



(8) 
joyous, but grievous, nevertheless, afterwards it yieldeth the peaceable 
fruit of righteousness unto them which are exercised thereby." These 
citations show the benevolent ministries of afflictions. Indeed afflic- 
tions,and even death is a part of the Christians legacy. ' 'All are yours, 
whether life or death. " Death with all antecedent sufferings is made 
a blessing to the child of God. Rom. VIII 28. "We know that all 
things work together for good to them that love God." This text 
takes all in, and proves that God tempers all our afflictions to our good, 
lifts us to a higher degree of blessedness because of them. Paul in 
Phil. Ill counted all things loss, that he might know Christ and 
the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings 
being made conformable to his death." No saint can share the 
fellowship of Christ's sufferings who does not drink the cap of suf- 
fering. God chastens the body that he may save the soul. He has 
to afflict us to keep us under proper control and in proper relations to 
himself. There are lessons that we would never learn without the 
school of suffering, such as our frailty, dependence on God, the 
perishable return of earthly things, and the necessity of trust in God 
and seeking a home in the eternal world. Jacob, like all these 
modern teachers, thought all his afflictions were against him, but, 
under the sky-light of Divine unfoldings,he took it all back and de- 
clared that God meant it all for good. "While the devil thought he 
was playing a shre wed part in the drama, God was threading his way 
through the whole affair and leading on to the accomplishment of his 
benevolent purpose. I believe that soul and body are provided for 
in the atonement; that the soul may be made perfect in love in this 
life, and that the body will be perfected in the resurrection. All 
intervening afflictions are under the will and control of God so far 
as his children are concerned. He can heal or sanctify all our afflic- 
tions according to his will. Yours ever 

J, W. HILL. 



WHAT DR. DOWIE TEACHES. 



In this review I desire, first, to show clearly from Rev. John 
Alex. Dowie's own words, exactly what he teaches on the subject 
of Divine Healing. And in doing so will make some passing 
remarks. 

I quote from his pamphlet entitled ''Divine Healing Vindi- 
cated," which is a reply to a paper prepared by Rev, E. C. Chap- 
man, D.D., at the request of the Pastors' Union, of Oakland, Cal., 
and read before and endorsed by that body. 

In his Reply Dr. Dowie says, (page 5,) "In the first place, 
I do not dispute the accuracy of the definition of our doctrine as 
given in this paper. He says I will call this paper the 'Pastor's 
Manifesto,' ' we want a name for it, and so will refer to it through- 
out. ' " Then he quotes from the " Pastor's Manifesto ' ' as follows : 
1 ' The distinguishing feature of what is known as the Doctrine of 
Divine Healing may be briefly stated: — First; that all bodily ailment 
is the work of the devil." Dowie. Well I am glad that they have 
said that. That is so. I think we have made that point tolerably 
clear, and I want to say we accept that for very sufficient reasons." 
"Pastor's Manifesto:" "The Second definition is that Christ came 
to destroy the works of the devil. ' ' Dowie : ' ' We are glad to accept 
that." We say " yes, he came to destroy the works of the devil, 
and disease is one of them. So we accept that position." 

Pastor's Manifesto: "Therefore it is the privilege of all who 
believe in him to enjoy 

PERFECT AND PERPETUAL BODILY HEALTH." 

Dowie: ''We accept it. We believe it is the privilege of all who 
live in Christ, that Christ shall live in them; that the Holy Ghost 
shall quicken our mortal flesh. " * * * * And we thankfully 
accept the definition that the Holy Spirit of God is the spirit of life 
and health, and that if he dwell in our mortal bodies disease will 
not." 

On page 9 of " Divine Healing Vindicated, " Dr. Dowie says: 
refering to the "Pastor's Manifesto," and quoting from it, "but our 



WHAT DR. DOWIE TEACHES. 



friends say we are to be free from wearisome toil. Thanks be to 
God, I accept that. We are freed from wearisome toil. * * * * 
I thank God that I am able to realize the meaning of that word, 
"They that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they 
shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run and not be 
weary; they shall walk and not faint.' Isa. 40:31. These wings of 
faith and hope take us right up to the mansions of God and we 
come down strong. ' ' 

"i THANK GOD WE CAN TOIL WITHOUT WEARINESS." 

The reader will notice that such physical perfection is claimed 
as exempts from all bodily weariness. Preposterous. 

On page 10, of " Divine Healing Vindicated," Dr. Dowie says: 
"Our friends say that God has a dual government; that he forgives 
sins, but there is no such certainty in healing sickness." What 
says the word? I don't trouble about what man says. What says 
the word of God? " Bless Jehovah, O my soul who forgiveth all thine 
iniquities; who healeth all thy diseases." "I dispute the accuracy of 
the theology which tells me that God forgives my sins, and adopts 
me into his family but leaves me at the same time in the hands of the 
devil to reap the consequences of it. It is not true. The God 
that forgives my sins will, if I go on to know him, if I follow on 
to know him, will deliver me from all the consequences of sin; for 
the redemption of my Lord is not a redemption of my spirit only, 
else it would be incomplete. What! Do you tell me that redemp- 
tion is for the spirit and not for the body ? Beloved, the word of 
God teaches the opposite." 

Here the Doctor teaches that as certainly as we may have our 
sins forgiven so certainly may we be freed from all sickness, and 
jjrot only this but that we ma}^ be 
DELIVERD FROM ALL THE CONSEQUENCES OF SIN IN THIS LIFE. 

Now, this is so manifestly contrary to scripture and all human 
experience and observation that a bare statement of the position is 
enough to refute it. Every reasoning Christian knows that a thous- 
and ills, weaknesses and infirmities beset the best of Christians all 
through this life, but that abundance of grace has been provided, 
not to remove these "consequences of sin," but to enable the Christ- 
ian to triumph over them. A liability to mistake or err in judg- 



WHAT DR. DOWIE TEACHES. 



ment is a consequence of sin; who is prepared to say that we are to 
be delivered in this life from all such liability? Christianity does 
not make us infallible. 

Persecution, affliction and all kind of suffering are some of the 
consequences of sin. Shall we claim exemption from all these in 
this life? Absurd. 

The atonement has provided for moral purity in this life, and 
glorious deliverance from all the consequences of sin in the world 
to come. ' ' When this corruptable shall have put on incorruption 
and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought 
to pass the saying that is written death is swallowed up in victory." 

On page 19 of " Divine Healing Vindicated," Dr. Dowie quotes 
again from the " Manifesto," as he calls it: " This doctrine sets up 
an unscriptural and false test of full and acceptable relationship with 
Christ." If perfect bodily health is the perpetual privilege of all 
believers in Jesus, as the advocates of the doctrine claim, then only 
those who are in perfect bodily health are enjoying their full privilege 
in Christ." Dowie: "We do not dispute the accuracy, and we de- 
fend the truth of this accusation if special stress be laid upon the 
last words their full privilege in Christ." 

Here Dr. Dowie teaches and ( ' defends ' ' the doctrine that it 
is the privilege of believers in Jesus to enjoy "perfect and perpetual 
bodily health. ' ' All that is necessary is to apply a little practical 
common sense to this theory to vanquish it. 

If this is the test of full acceptability to Christ, how many of 
the most pious of the past and present measure up to the standard ? 
Indeed, many wicked men would bear the test better than many of 
the most devoted Christians. 

On same page as above, we have this statement by Dr. Chap- 
man, as quoted and replied to by Dr. Dowie. " The influence of this 
doctrine, if accepted and promulgated, cannot fail to be harmfu-. 
It brings upon the blessed gospel of Christ, needless and harmful 
reproach, by claiming for it that which it was not designed to give. 
Hence, wherever this standard is set up, and this doctrine taught, 
thinking men are thereby inclined to scoff at religion and these 
scoffings are not silenced nor weakened by any of the achieve- 
ments of this faith. The claims of the advocates of this doctrine 



WHAT DR. DOWIE TEACHES. 



are not vindicated by their achievements, the alleged healings are 
far from satifactory to the spirit of sincere and honest inquiry. They 
are usually incomplete and temporary and many times decidedly 
questionable." 

All the above and much more is true of it in Chicago. It is 
sickening, the number of disapointed people that are weekly turned 
away no better than when they came, with the comforting (?) in- 
formation that the fault is all their own. That, in the first place, 
they are to blame for being sick, and now they are to blame for 
not exercising faith for healing. Judging from what I have wit- 
nessed at the meetings and in the vicinity of the " homes-" I be- 
lieve that a very large majority of the people who come here for 
healing go away grievously disappointed. Some are so thoroughly 
filled with the teaching that, while they go away without healing 
they accept the teaching and take all the blame upon themselves. 

On page 34 of ''Divine Healing Vindicated," Dr. Dowie quotes 
the following from Rev. Dr. Chapman's paper. "This doctrine 
as it is being taught would visit the bedside of every suffering 
believer in Christ and enshroud them all in the gloom of Divine 
displeasure; it would fill them with the terrors of the presence and 
blows of the prince of darkness; it would smite them in the midst 
of their sufferings with the Divine rebuke for their sinful unbelief ; 
it would place the continuance of their suffering at the door of their 
own lack of faith ; it would rob them of that blissful sense of full 
and unclouded fellowship and communion with the blessed Mas- 
ter, which is to them in this hour of their sorest need, such a source 
of joy and strength, and would add to the poignancy of every bodily 
pain the more distressing sense of distance from Christ and his dis- 
pleasure at their lack of faith in him." 

Dr. Dowie' s reply to this is simply a denial; but his denial does 
not change the facts. 

Here is a sick person, you inform him that it is God's will to 
heal him; that "disease can never be God's will;" that his 

SICKNESS IS THK DIRIECT WORK OF THE DEVIL J 

that his present sicknes is an evidence of the Divine displeasure, 
and an evidence of his lack of full and complete acceptability with 
Christ, and the effect would depend upon his spiritual condition. If 



WHAT DR. DOWIE TEACHES. 



lie prizes health and release from suffering more than the conscious- 
ness of pleasing God and doing or suffering his will, then he would 
brighten up, and be glad in the hope of speedy recovery, but if, on 
on the other hand, he prefers the Divine favor (anu, bless God a 
sick man may have that), and feels in his heart that he would 
rather die than grieve or displease his God, then such a doctrine 
would result in 

SPIRITUAL GLOOM AND UNREST. 

And in case of failure to receive healing, having accepted the 
teaching, he is robbed of the joy and strength of a sense of Christ's 
presence, which is so much needed in the hour of distress and sick- 
ness. 

On page 36 of "Divine Healing Vindicated, " Dr. Dowie teaches 
that 

"THOSE WHO ENJOY THEIR FULL PRIVILEGE IN CHRIST 
WILL NEVER DIE," 

that is, they "go to sleep " as he calls it without suffering any 
pain, his theory being that bodily pain is an evidence of the presence 
of sin. 

Speaking of the early Christians he says : ' ' They never feared 
death for they never saw it. r They lived trusting Christ for salva- 
tion ; they lived — when they were faithful — trusting him for heal- 
ing. Then, when their work was done they laid down their heads 
and slept on earth to wake up in heaven.' 5 Continuing he says : 
" If my work is to end to-night, I am willing to lie down in peace 
to sleep ; but I am 

NOT WILLING THAT THE FILTHY FINGERS OF THE DEVIL 
SHALL POLUTE MY BODY WITH DISEASE. 

I say no, this body belongs to my Lord, let him possess it, let Him 
cleanse it, let Him heal it, let him keep it, and when my work is 
done, let me lie down in peace and sleep, ' He giveth his beloved 
sleep.'" 

Is the reader prepared to accept this theory that because it is 
stated that the early Christians "fell asleep in Jesus" that there- 
fore (" when they were faithful") they died without feeling any 
pain and that if they did it was 

THE FILTHY FINGER OF THE DEVIL 

poluting them with disease? 



WHAT DR. DOVVIE TEACHES. 



Shall we conclude that all the millions of Christians who have 
triumphed in death and in the midst of great suffering and testified 
as they passed through the Jordan of death that the blood of Jesus 
Christ cleansed them from all sin, were mistaken ? For certainly 
they were mistaken if it was their privilege to so trust Jesus for 
healing that sickness and pain should not be felt. 

What is all this but rank fanaticism ? 

In a pamphlet entitled ' ■ Talks with Ministers on Divine 
Healing," Dr. Dowie says : " Disease, like sin, is God's enemy, 
and the devil's work, and can never be God's will." 
Thus by classing disease and sickness with sin he makes it 

AS RKAI,I,Y A SIN TO BE SICK AS TO BE PROUD OR 
ENVIOUS OR REVENGEFUL. 

Further, by attributing all disease and sickness directly to Satan 
he is made the executor of God's law, one of the penalties of which 
is bodily ailment. Of course, it is admitted that the devil prepared 
the way for all suffering, including disease and sickness, by the 
introduction of sin into the world ; but to say that all suffering is . 
the direct work of the devil and that it is in no sense and no case 
the will of God is not supported either by the word of God or 
human experience and observation. 

Think of the devil leading a man to steal and then instituting 
a court of justice, trying an sentencing him and axecuting the 
penalty. God gave the law and attached the penalty and will see 
that it is executed. If he permits, or uses Satan in some cases 
to carry out his designs, it is his prerogative; but to give Satan 
credit with all that work is to make him an important factor in. 
the moral government of the world and church. It makes 

SATAN A NECESSARY FACTOR 

in carrying out God's benevolent designs with his people. 

Various scriptures teach the beneficial effects of affliction, such 
as Ps. 119:67-71; and Heb. 12:5-11. 

" Before I was afflicted I went astray ; but now have I kept 
thy word. It is good for me that I have been afflicted that I might 
learn thy law. My son despise not thou the chastening of the Lord,, 
nor faint when thou art rebuked of him ; for whom the Lord loveth 
he chasteneth and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth. If ye 



WHAT DR. DOWIE TEACHES. 



endure chastening God dealeth with you as with sons ; for what 
son is he whom the father chasteneth not ? But if ye be without 
chastisement whereof all are partakers then are ye bastards and not 
sons. Furthermore, we have had fathers of our flesh which corrected 
us and we gave them reverence ; shall we not rather be in subjec- 
tion to the Father of spirits and live ? For they verily for a few 
days chastened us after their own pleasure ; but he for our profit 
that we might be partakers of his holiness. Now no chastening for 
the present seemeth to be joyous but grevious ; nevertheless after- 
ward it yieldeth the peaceable fruits of righteousness unto them 
which are exercised thereby." 

Where is the -Christian but has found tnat trials and afflictions, 
including 

BODILY AILMENT, HAVE OFTEN HAD A BENEFICIAL EFFECT 

upon his spiritual life ? Shall we give the devil credit with such 
benevolent work as this ? 

On page 2 of his pamphlet entitled ' ' Talk with Ministers on 
Divine Healing," Dr. Dowie teaches the 

REDEMPTION OF THE BODY IN THIS LIFE. 

He says : " The point is, has Christ delivered us from all the 
power of the enemy? We teach that he has, and, therefore that 
salvation extends to the body and that his 'saving health' is a 
gospel of salvation and healing which must be proclaimed among 
all nations. Therefore we teach the redemption of the body; 
(Rom. 8:23) and that the life of Jesus should be made manifest in 
our mortal flesh, 2 Cor. 4:11. We make the bold assertion of the 
Apostle Paul, namely, ' If the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus 
from the dead dwell in you, He that raised up Christ from the dead 
shall also quicken your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwelleth in 
you.' 

THIS REDEMPTION OF THE BODY WAS NEVER TAUGHT BY JESUS 
AS SOMETHING BELONGING TO THE HEREAFTER. 

He taught that this was to be the continuous work of the Holy 
Spirit in all the ages." 

It is not our purpose in this chapter to argue at length any of 
these points, but simply to get before the mind of the reader the 



WHAT DR. DOWIE TEACHES. 



doctrine as it is being taught in this city by Dr. Dowie and his co- 
laborers. 

It will be observed that in this last statement as 

COMPLETE REDEMPTION IS CLAIMED FOR THE BODY IN THIS LIFE 

as is claimed for the soul or spirit. 

Therefore Christian perfection, according to Dowie means 
physical perfection in this life. 

Every physical defect should be perfectly cured. Every absent 
limb should be restored. Every decayed tooth should be made 
whole, and every missing one replaced. 

GRAY HAIRS, BALD HEADS, WRINKLED FACES, AND BENT FORMS 
SHOULD NO LONGER BE SEEN 

reflecting discredit upon our Savior. Christians should no longer 
go about wearing eye glasses (/'eye crutches," as Dr. Dowie used to 
call them.) The reader will pardon me for turning aside a mo- 
ment here, since I have hinted at the circumstance, to state that when 
Rev. John Alex. Dowie was in Pittsburgh several years ago he made 
all manner of fun of people who wore eye glasses, calling them 

"eye crutches." 
saying ''throw away your eye crutches, what are you hobbling around 
that way for." Now, everybody that sees and hears him knows 
that he uses them constantly. Probably he has changed his views 
on that point as age and circumstances made it necessary, just as 
he will have to do on some other points before he dies. If he or any 
one else is disposed to dispute the correctness of this statement I 
have unimpeachable witnesses in this city to prove it. 

In a tract entitled "If it be thy will " Dr. Dowie says: " It is 
a constant experience in our ministery to hear from the lips 
of Christians who are seeking the Lord for healing, the statement 
that they have always prayed for deliverance from pain and sickness 
with the proviso ' if it be thy will.' This is the cause in tens of 
thousands of cases why their suffering and disease is not removed, 
for such a prayer is not the prayer of faith and not in accordance 
with the will of God." 

He then proceeds to answer certain objections that are urged 
against his view. He tries to show that God promises to heal all 



WHAT DR. DOWIE TEACHES. 



cases of bodily ailments by claiming that all those passages in the 
bible refering to healing apply to physical healing. 

Among others he quotes Isiah 35: 5-6 "Then the eyes of the 
blind shall be opened and the ears of the deaf shall be unstopped. 
Then shall 

THE EAME MAN LEAP AS AN HART 

and the tongue of the dumb sing. ' ' 

Now while these scriptures had a literal fulfillment in the 
v^orks of Christ, it was more as a kind of prophesy of the " greater 
works ' ' that wers to follow. To claim that such scripture has its 
fulfillment in mere bodily healing is a 

TRAVESTY ON GOD'S WORD 

and degrading to the promises of God. Talk of Miracles; the sal- 
vation of the soul from all sin is ten thousand times more of a mir- 
acle than healing of the body or even the ressurrection of the dead. 
Yea, it is a greater miracle to save and sanctify a soul so that it is 
kept gentle, patient and submissive in the midst of sickness, than it 
is to be physically healed. 

" GREATER WORKS THAN THESE SHAEL HE DO 

because I go unto my Father." John 14: 12. 

God can heal or he can do a greater thing, which was promise 
to St. Paul, when he prayed for healing or relief from some great 
trouble, in these words, "my grace is sufficient for thee, for my 
strength is made perfect in weakness." 

Again Dr. Dowie says in the same tract, ' ' It cannot be for 
God's glory that any of his children should be unhealed, since God 
is never glorified in our sickness any more than in our sin, for both 
sin and sickness are clearly Satan's work." That is, God is limited 
to one single way of getting glory to his name out of sickness, and 
that by miraculously healing. Not so. 

No benefit can in any way come to the person because of sick- 
ness, no lessons of patience, no good resolutions or determinations 
produced. Absurd. The hand of providence is seen in everything 
about us so that not even a sparrow falls to the ground without his 
notice, but according to this theory we must not regard God as hav- 
ing any voice in our sickness. It is purely and wholly of the devil. 
How can any sensible Christian accept for a moment such nonsense? 



10 WHAT DR. DOWIE TEACHES. 

God can glorify himself in our healing or he can glorify him- 
self in many ways in our sickness. Who cannot say with the 
Psalmist? " It is good for me that I have been afflicted. Before I 
was afflicted I went astray, but now have I kept thy word." 

How many by sickness have been led to see that they had be- 
come worldly and vain, and repented and were saved ? 

In his sermon, Feb. 25, 1896, in Zion Tabernacle, Dr. Dowie 
said, 

" PEOPLE THAT ARE SICK ARE ALWAYS SELFISH." 
This is a broad and sweeping statement, but it is as false as it is 
broad. Some sick people are, no doubt, selfish; but millions have 
been saved from all sin in the midst of sickness, and millions more 
have gone from bsds of great suffering, "sweeping through the gates, 
washed in the blood of the Lamb." 

Shall we say that Paul's "companion in labor, and fellow sold- 
ier " was selfish because he was sick? Says Paul, Phil. II. 25-30: 
' 'Yet I supposed it necessary to send to you Epaphroditus,my brother, 
and companion in labor, and fellow soldier, but your messenger, and he 
that ministered to my wants. For he longed after you all, and was 
full of heaviness, because that ye had heard that he had been sick. 
For indeed he was sick, nigh unto death; but God had mercy on him; 
and not on him only, but on me also, lest I should have sorrow upon 
sorrow. I sent him therefore the more careful^, that when ye see 
him again ye may rejoice, and that I may be the less sorrowful. 
Receive him therefore in the Lord with all gladness; and hold such 
in reputation; because, for the work of Christ, he was nigh unto 
death not regarding his life to supply your lack of service towards 
me." 

Was Job, selfish? of whom God said, " Hast thou considered my 
servant Job that there is none like him in all the earth, a perfect and 
an upright man, one that feareth God, and escheweth evil? " 

Was King Hezekiah selfish? when it was said, II. Kings 20: 1-2-3, 
"In those days was Hezekiah sick unto death. And the prophet 
Isaiah the son of Amos came to him, and said unto him, Thus saith 
the Lord, set thine house in order; for thou shalt die, and not live. 
Then he turned his face to the wall, and prayed unto the Lord, say- 
ing, I beseech thee, OLord,remembernow how I have walked before 
thee in truth and with a perfect heart, and have done that which is 
good in thy sight." 

Not a "selfish " heart but a "perfect heart." 



DR. DOWIE'S WORK. 



God forbid that I should lay a straw in the way of any good 
work — that I should " forbid any one to cast out devil's because he 
followeth not us." 

It was only after due consideration and prayer, and abundance 
of opportunit}^ to be informed upon the subject, that I decided to 
publicly expose Dowie's so-called " Divine Healing " business. 

During the past three years, which is the length of time of his 
operations in this city, I have lived and been engaged in mission 
and evangelistic work in Chicago, and the neighborhood of his Tab- 
ernacle and " Homes;" and have met a great many of his victims, 
both from the city and elsewhere. I do not mean that I have met 
many that were healed, for I have only seen a few that claimed heal- 
ing through his instrumentality, and they were extremely question- 
able. One would suppose from the flaming reports that are blazed 
abroad, that the city would be full of miraculously healed people. 

On the whole, I regard the tendencj^ and trend of the work 

RUINOUS TO THE CAUSE OF CHRIST. 

It is the same old spirit that the apostle Paul referred to when he 
said to the Philippians, " Beware of dogs, beware of evil workers, 
beware of the concision." That is, beware of those Judaizing 
teachers who, while they professed to be Christians, insisted upon 
circumcision according to the Mosaic law, and being void of the 
spirit of Christ, were unholy and rapacious, and so Paul called 
them dogs. These Judaizers taught that Christians must be circum- 
cised or they were not acceptable to God; but here we have the 
teaching that to be sick is a sin, and an evidence of God's displeasure 
and a lack of full acceptability with God. 

Spiritually the whole field of his operations is a ' ' wilderness and 
a solitary place." 

There is none of the spirit of a general revival of religion about 
it. True, he has succeeded, by various means, in creating a great 
interest in the subject of Faith Healing, and people are flocking here 
from all parts of the country because of the wonderful things they 



12 DR. DOWIE'S WORK. 



have heard were done, and in hopes of being cured, but not because 
they are hungering and thirsting after righteousness. It is very 

FAR FROM A GENUINE REVIVAL OF PURE RELIGION. 

The doctor professes to place the spiritual work ahead of healing, 
but practically healing is the alpha and omega of his work. Many 
people accept his teaching for the sake of bodily healing, and it is 
evident that the great majority are after the " loaves and fishes." 

The burden of all the preaching and teaching is "healing;" 
and any talk or discourse that does not center in that is flat and in- 
sipid — in fact that is all there is to it, except at present, considerable 
is being said about the new 

"christian catholic church," 
which has just been organized. 

The spirit and trend of the whole work is to breed disaffec- 
tion in churches. Instead of engendering and encouraging a spirit 
of forbearance in Christians of different denominations with what 
they may deem wrong in their churches, everything possible is said 
to produce alienation, and to identify them with what Dr. Dowie is 
pleased to call " Zion's movement." 

It is one of the most 

INTENSELY SECTARIAN AND PROSELYTING INSTITUTIONS 

I have ever found. 

Not a good word is heard for any Christian denomination on 
earth except the "Christian Catholic Church." In illustration of 
this point I quote from " Leaves of Healing" of Jan. 3, 1896. 

"where are The sheep going? 
Brethren in the ministry, let me tell you, the sheep are going where 
they can get pasture and good water. Yes, but they are Meth- 
odists. No, they are not. They are Baptists. No, they are not. 

YOU MISERABLE OLD BAPTISTS 

who put sixty feet of water around the Lord's table and then freeze 
it with your exclusiveness and conceit as hard as granite and no man 
upon earth can masticate it. It takes more than the stomach of an 
ostrich to digest it. 

YOU MISERABLE METHODISTS, 

you once had fire and you have got a great deal of heavenly fire 
mixed with a little hell-fire. You once had holy fire and it burned 



DR. DOWIE'S WORK. 13 



brightly and blessed all the earth, but the fact of the matter is, that 
many of your bishops and ministers are free masons, and most of the 
fire is in the secret lodge. You miserable Methodists, you have got 
into the hands of an ecclesiastical clique who have got you into spir- - 
itual bondage, and who intend to keep you, unless you 

"break away." 
Yes, "break away. " That is the purpose of such harangues as the 
above. This shows the intolerant spirit of the man as well as the 
supreme bigotry. These were preparatory word to the organization 
of the new " Christian Catholic Church." 

In "Leaves of Healing," Jan. 24, 1896, Dr. Dowie says, 
" Why don't you get close to Jesus ? The reason why is not far to 
seek in many cases. Your churches and your ministers drive you 
away from Jesus and lash you into the hands of their professional 
allies, the 

DEALERS in PILLS, POISON AND BLOOD. 

Men who say they are his servants are going about with a whip try- 
ing to drive their people back into their denominational drug-doctor- 
and -surgeon folds." 

Here the failure to " get close to Jesus " is charged up to the 
churches and ministry because they do not discard physicians, sur- 
geons and all remedies. 

In the same issue of " Leaves of Healing," in answer to a letter 
from a Presbyterian asking advice as to leaving the church, he says, 
' ' But there is a more excellent way than fighting it out in these 
withering churches, where intolerance has replaced liberty. 

At least that way will be opened to all who are of ' like pres- 
cious faith ' in Chicago ere long: for the Christian Catholic Church 
will soon be ready to receive the persecuted members of all churches 
which refuse to allow their members liberty to believe in God's word, 
'I am the Lord that healeth thee, ' and 'I am the Lord, I change not/ 
So long as people do not live out their beliefs, just so long will mis- 
erable hypocrites keep silence in the churches. But the moment faith 
is accompanied with works, then these unspiritual hirelings who are 

SLAVES TO POTIONS AND PILLS, 

will cry out; for their craft is in danger to be set at naught. ' 

After trying for nearly twenty years to get the churches to be 



DR. DOWIE'S WORK. 



kind to their own members who believe in the Lord as their healer, 
we have come to the conclusion that for the most part, the attempt 
is fruitless, and so we are 

GOING TO TAKE CARE OF OUR OWN CONVERTS 

and of alHhe Lord's people whom he leads to us. 

Life is worth more than to spend it in fighting for the right to 
remain in fellowship wdth such narrow-minded bigots, such jealous, 
mean-spirited, envious and false shepherds." 

As to " narrow-minded bigots, ' ' it certainly would be hard to 
find a more genuine specimen than is indicated by the above. An 
intolerance that excludes from Christian privilege and fellowship, 
for emplo3dng a physician or surgeon, or using any remedies, is 
about as " narrow-minded " as can well be imagined. 

The use of the most simple remedy is regarded as a sin, and ex- 
cludes from all privilege of the "healing room," from the prayers 
of Dr. Dowie (as he will not pray for anyone that uses any remedies 
whatever,) and from membership in the ' ' Christian Catholic Church." 

I heard Dr. Speicher, one of Dr. Dowde's co-laborers, give the 
following account of a visit to a sick child. He was sent for to pray 
for the child which had the croup. When he found that the parents 
had been using lard and goosegrease, he refused to pray for the child 
until they not only desisted from the use of the remedy, but got 
down upon their knees and repented of the 

' ' SIN ' ' OP USING LARD AND GOOSE GREASE. 

Where can anything be found to exceed this for "narrow- 
mindedness and bigotry?" 

This work and teaching is exceedingly disastrous to Christian 
usefulness. 

People w 7 ho embrace this teaching seem to get along very well 
while in health, but when sickness comes they are in trouble. They 
not only have to contend with disease and suffering, but with what 
is far more distressing, the thought, and, according to this doctrine, 
the sure evidence of God's displeasure with them. Numerous are 
the cases in Chicago that have only been 

DELIVERED FROM THIS DELUSION 
b}^ a spell of sickness. 

In health it is easy to go about among the sick and, like Job's 



DR. DOWIE'S WORK. 15 



"miserable comforters," charge them with sin and unfaithfulness as 
the cause of their sickness, but when it comes home it is quite 
another thing. Frequently these people find themselves taken 
suddenly sick when in as good a state of grace as they have ever 
been. I have in mind now the case of a man, only a few weeks ago, 
who was thoroughly cured of this error by a spell of sickness in 
which he was compelled to give up and go to the hospital, a thing 
that heretofore he would have hooted at. When first taken sick he 
thought of course the Iyord must heal him, and so, prayed and 
agonized by the hour until perfectly exhausted. At that point a 
strong consolation came to his soul, and, like a revelation from God, 
these words, "my grace is sufficent for thee." Such a blessing 
came upon him that, while he was now willing to suffer the will of 
God, he really thought he was healed; but, without throwing any 
shadow on his soul, the sickness and pain returned and he went to 
the hospital, where, with proper care and treatment, after a very severe 
sickness, he recovered, but with an experience that enabled him 
while convalescing to minister to the spiritul wants of the sick and 
dying about him. He now declares that he sees the hand of God in 
sending him to that hospital, and is happy in the fact of his delivery 
from his great error. 

It is not by any means every case that turns out so favorably; 
many drag along through weary months and years of self condem- 
nation, censuring themselves because they are sick. Others back- 
slide, and still others are driven into infidelity. 

Under this teaching the sick room is a gloomy place, the devil 
is having his own way for the time being. God is left out of the 
question only as he is besought to miraculously heal. The sick are 
not expected to bear the affliction patiently and meekly, for this 
would be to submit to the devil. Shouting and rejoicing have come 
to an end, for the patient has found an enemy in his being th^t must 
be destroyed before there can be victory and peace. With this 
theory in vogue, there can be no such thing as a happy death bed 
scene, unless per chance one should, as Dr. Dowie claims he expects to, 

DIE WITHOUT FEELING PAIN OR BEING SICK. 

No longer can it be said under this teaching, " our people die 

well." 



16 DR. DOWIE'S WORK. 

When ones last sickness comes, he, not knowing it to be such r 
will resist it to the last, and the nearer the grave the keener the 
sense of defeat. 

The idea of conquering sickness and having the victory over it 
by patient resignation and joyful suffering is ignored. 

Another damaging feature of this error is, that it keeps one 
worrying and working with his own case, leaving little, if any time 
to devote to others. If there is some physical disability or ailment, 
(and comparatively few are free of them), his time and energies 
are exhausted upon himself. 

Persons that previous to embracing this error, were efficient 
workers, have become dissatisfied with their spiritual condition and 
of course, inefficient as workers. 

Some people, while they do not approve wholly of the work, 
tolerate it because there seems to be some good done and some 
healed. After thorough and prayerful investigation and consid. 
eration, I do not hesitate to say, that if all the thousands who 
come here for healing were perfectly restored in body, it would not 
atone for a tithe of the harm that comes to the souls of the people 
and the cause of Christ by the teaching and spirit of the meetings. 

"A meek and a quiet spirit," we are told, " is, in the sight of 
God, of great price." The display of all that is contrary to such a 
spirit is constantly before the people — rude, sarcastic, cutting, un- 
merciful language, more becoming a low order of the stage than 
the pulpit. 

If the Christian graces, love, meekness, gentleness, kindness, 
longsuffering, patience, are of more consequence than bodily heal- 
ing, if heaven and eternal things are more valuable than earthly and 
temporal things, then this work is ruinous to souls and damaging 
to the cause of Christ. 

Undue and unwarrantable importance is given to temporal in- 
terests. At best these bodies are temporal. This "tabernacle" will 
soon be " dissolved." What if we are afflicted? It is but for a mo- 
ment. Says Paul, " though our outward man perish, yet the inward 
man is renewed day by day. For our light affliction,* which is but 
for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal 
weight of glory; While we look not at the things which are seen; 



DR. DOWIE'S WORKS. 17 

for the things what are seen are temporal; but the things which are 
not seen are eternal." 2 Cor. 4- 16- 17- 18. 

Great harm is done by this teaching and work in unnecessarily 
provoking people to scoff at the cause of Christ, and by raising a 
false standard and test for Christianity. Says Mr. Wesley, ''There 
is no better way to undo a thing than to overdo it. " 

When "perfect and perpetual bodily health" is demanded as an 
evidence of full acceptability with Christ, the thing is " overdone." 

At 6100 Stony Island Ave., Chicago, is located what Dr. Dowie 
calls "Zion Tabernacle No. 2," alow two-story brick building. On 
the upper floor are the <( healing rooms," and a large audience room 
with seatings for about 1,000 persons. At one end of this large 
room is an elevated platform about 4 feet high and 20 feet deep, and the 
width of the room, with seatings for a large choir of singers. Fast- 
ened to the walls in the rear, and on either side are hundreds of 
crutches, canes, shoes, braces, bottles of medicine, etc., etc., to ad- 
vertise to all who visit the place the wonderful things that are being 
done. 

There are two " healing rooms. " The larger one will accomo- 
date about 70 and the other 30 persons. Both are usually crowded. 

The first floor is used for a lunch room and ' ' Zion Publishing 
House"where a weekly paper is published, called ''Leaves of Healing. " 

Services are held here every Sunday, Tuesday and Friday. 
Hundreds of people throng the place. Often, on week days, nearly 
a thousand are in attendance. However, it -is evident that a very 
large per cent of them are from abroad, the great majority of Chicago 
people having become disgusted with the whole thing. Thousands 
of people here, who were once more or less favorable, have aban- 
doned the place. 

Only a few days ago I heard Dr. Dowie say that he could not 
carry on this work, if it were not for the money he received from 
abroad. 

' ' Distance lends enchantment. ' ' 

In the neighborhood of Zion Tabernacle are three ' ' Divine 
Healing Homes," sufficient to accomodate about 70 persons. These 
"guests" are charged from ten to fifteen dollars per week for room 
and board. 



18 DR. DOWIE'S WORK. 

Persons applying for admission to the " healing rooms" are 
advised to take the " teaching " first a lew days, to prevent them, 
they say, from ' ' becoming discouraged if they are not healed at once. " 

The philosophy of which is, that the "teaching," when fully 
accepted, is harder to cure than the disease — that is, they will hold to 
the delusion, though they fail of healing, and go home blaming them- 
selves for their failure and lack of faith. 

■ ' Leaves of Healing " is a weekly devoted entirely to the ' ' Di- 
vine Healing" question and the interest of the new "Christian Cath- 
olic Church," which was organized Feb. 22, 1896. 

The following from ' ' Leaves of Healing ' ' will give the reader 
some light on the new church that has just been born: 

' ' The Christian Catholic Church was formed in Zion Tabernacle 
No. 2, on Saturday last, and a full account of the proceedings occu- 
pies the greater part of this issue. 

We have at last returned to organized church life after the 
greater part of twenty years absence from it, and with the very clear- 
est token of God's approval. 

The work will from this time be associated with the church which 
Christ has purchased with his blood, and will be carried on as a part 
of its mission on earth." 

The above is editorial. 

The following is from the account of the proceedings and from 
Dr. Dowie's address on the occasion: 

"ZION'S ONWARD MOVEMENT. ORGANIZATION OF 
THE CHRISTIAN CATHOLIC CHURCH, 

IN ZION TABKRNACLB NO. 2, SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 1896. 

The entire morning from 9 a. m. to 1 p. m., was given to the 
work of receiving applications and of examining and filing them in 
alphabetical order. 

Hundreds gathered around the long tables where volunteer 
helpers gave every assistance. 

At 2 o'clock the Rev. John Alex. Dowie, the General Overseer 
of the Christian Catholic Church, accompanied by many helpers, 
ascended the platform and gave out the marching song of Zion's 
Onward Movement. 



DR. DOWIE'S WORK. 19 



' Come ye that love the Lord, 
And let your joys be known;' 

* * * * * This was sung with great heartiness and many re- 
marks were made by the General Overseer between the separate verses 
in his usual interesting way. * * **.*•;.* When the hymn 
had been sung the General Overseer said: — 'Beloved friends, I think 
it well before we read our roll to repeat together the beautiful song- 
of salvation, of healing, of holiness, and of Triumphant Entry into 
the Zion above, which has been so often throughout our association 
as a mission, an exercise with us. Let it be the beautiful opening 
exercise now. The 35th of Isaiah, I hope you have all got it in your 
hearts, and if not read it with us from | your books until you have all 
got the words in your hearts.' * * * * * * * 

ROLL CALL, PRAYER BY GENERAL OVERSEER. 

DIRECTION. 

The officers at the door will please to listen and attend to this 
instruction: See that no one enters the door of Zion Tabernacle 
now, unless they have already made application for fellowship, or 
will do so before they enter the room. 

THE GENERAL RECORDER READS THE ROLL. 

After ascertaining that there were none present except those 
who had filled up their forms of application for membership, the 
General Overseer introduced the Rev. Thomas G. Atterberry, as 
temporary General Recorder, who proceeded to the long task of 
nearly three hours in reading the roll. Hundreds of names in ad- 
dition to those of the three hundred and seventy present were read 
by the Recorder 

the general overseer's charge to the church. 

>f< %. >Jc >j< %. %. >fc 

'I want you all to feel that my time, my talents, the money with 
which I am entrusted and all the powers I can exert for good shall be 
employed to bring 3-ou into ' fellowship ' with God and into fellow- 
ship with me. I believe that I can truly say that 'our fellowship is 
with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ.' 

Brothers and sisters, I am going to give that word Fellowship a 
very wide meaning before we get through. I want that you and I 
shall enter into fellowship of service for Christ. 



20 DR. DOWIE'S WORKS. 

That you will follow me when I shall take from amongst you 
seventies to go from house to house throughout Chicago. I am going 
to have you carefully trained, and will ask you to help train yourselves 
for Christ's service, by searching the Word, by knowing the best 
means of approaching men and by knowing how to pray and speak 
the Word of God so that you may go out two and two and help men 
to find God. I not only want that, but I want 
Fellowship in all the great sweep op a great church's 

WORK. *.*.** 

We must have a Fellowship of help, money, counsel, and very 
many other things. 

Fellowship with Christ, with the Apostles and with me, fellow- 
ship means that we shall 'love one another.' 

THE CHURCH MUST HAVE A BUSINESS FELLOWSHIP — IN GETTING 

MONEY, IN SAVING MONEY AND IN SPENDING 

MONEY FOR CHRIST. 

Come what will, God helping me I will spread the truth "in these 
matters. 

(Applause) * * * * * 

Now I read in my bible that the Lord Jesus Christ said once: 
4 One is your master even Christ, and all ye are brethren. ' say these 
words. (All repeat together) ' All ye are brethren.' 

Then the rich man is my brother, then the cultivated man is my 
"brother, if he is a Christian. Now I propose to tell the Christian 
Catholic Church everywhere that these words must find practical 
expression. Are you a manufacturer ? Yes. Are you rich? Yes. 
All right then, we need you in Zion, What do you want ? Well I 
want you to bring capital, I want you to bring your machinery, 
want you to buy up land bye and bye in our Zion, and I want you to 
stay there, and settle there, and use your money, skill, and organiz- 
ing faculty to build up factories, workshops and stores on a co-ope- 
rative basis. 

I want to see in Zion a condition of things that will enable all 
who can work to find remunerative work right there. 

Do we not all wear boots? I think we do, don't we? lam 
glad to see you all have shoes to wear. Don't we all wear coats? 
Don't we all wear shirts, etc. etc? Yes. Now there are thousands of 



DR. DOWIE'S WORKS. 21 

us, and I want to know why we cannot make our own boots ? I am 
told there are likely to be soon three thousand members of this 
church in Chicago alone, and reckoning a family of, say four, with 
each, that would be a community of 12,000 at once. I want to 
know why we cannot have a Zion Co-operative Boot Factory. I do 
not see any reason against it,- do you? Very well, then I want 10 
per cent of all the profits of that factory for Zion's funds, I want a 
sufficient return to be given to those who furnish the capital, and I 
want all the balance of the profits to be divided amongst the work- 
men in proportion to their salaries. 

Now I want to know whether we, who do not drink whisky, 
and do not drink beer, and do not use tobacco, and who live sober, 
frugal, temperate and industrious Christian lives, men and women 
who have strong hands and stout hearts, whether we cannot build 
up Co-operative Factories and have Fellowship together in business. 
How delightful to have a factory where God is honored, and where, 
when the bell rings in the morning, the first thing is ' We're march- 
ing to Zion' or some other of the songs of Zion. 

Wouldn't that be nice to hear that in the factories? 

Beautiful,- beautiful Zion, 
We're marching upward to Zion, 
The Beautiful city of God.' 

It would be nice to have that, and at dinner time to have 
the boys gather and talk about Zion and the good things of 
God and man. Can we not have fellowship in service for Christ 
mean fellowship in business for Christ? (Yes sir). I believe in 
ten years, if God spares my life, and if we are faithful, that I 
shall be at the head, if I continue to be the General Overseer 
of the Christian Catholic Church, of the strongest and wealthiest 
church that the world has ever seen. I believe that. 

(Applause). * * ^ *■ *. * 

I HOPE TO BUILD A LITTLE CITY TO BE CATTED ZION, . 

and hope some day to stand upon the dome of a Zion Temple to hold 
from 10,000 to 20,000 persons, and I hope one day to look abroad 
over that lovely city and to bring visitors to look upon its beauty, 
its Homes, Colleges, Schools, etc., and say this is Zion. * * * 

DECLARATION OE THE CONSTITUTION OE THE CHURCH. 

Amidst profound silence the General Overseer spoke as follows: 



22 DR. DOWIE'S WORK. 

In the name of the Lord Jesus, in the power of the Holy Spirit, 
and in accordance with the will of God our heavenly Father, I believe, 
and believing that I am thereunto called as the General Overseer of 
this flock,not only in this place, but in all the cities and villages and 
states and counties, where persons have applied or shall apply for fel- 
lowship, do now constitute this church as a gathering of believers 
under the title of the Christian Catholic Church. I pray that all ye 
who are now gathered, and all who shall yet gather unto this church, 
shall fulfill the great design of our Lord and Saviour, that we may 
"be one as he with the Father is One, and with the Eternal Spirit, 
that we may be one in him. May this church be divinely endowed 
with the nine gifts of the Holy Ghost, with the word of wisdom, 
the word of Knowledge, Faith, Gifts of Healing, Working of Mira- 
cles, Prophecy, Discerning of Spirits, Divers kinds of Tongues, and 
Interpretation of Tongues, and with that gift of love which is the 
crown of all, that precious gift which enables the church to fulfil 
all. Oh with that love let these gifts be exercised and this church 
go on to the glory of God, the Father, in the name of the Lord 
Jesus Christ and by the power of the Holy Spirit. Let all the people 
say Amen. (Ambn.) The hymn, 'Onward Christian Soldiers,' was 
then sung." 

I have given this description of the ' ' Divine Healing ' ' institu- 
tion, and this lengthy quotation from " Leaves of Healing " on the 
organization of the "Christian Catholic Church," that the reader 
may get an idea of the man who is at the head of this great (?) 
movement. 

I might have stated, as a matter of news to many, that for the 
last six months Dr. Dowie has preached every Sunday afternoon in 
the Auditorium on Michigan avenue, Congress street and Wabash 
avenue, in the finest and largest theater in the city, to from 3000 to 
5000 people; paying $300 for each service. The collections usually 
amount to ab}ut half that sum, leaving him to pay the balance 
out of donations from abroad. 

Now, if the reader will study these facts he will readily see that 
Rev. John Alex. Dowie is the Alpha and Omega of the whole thing. 
In "Leaves of Healing," the most conspicuous thing about it are 
the pictures of himself and family. Even his flaming adver- 
tisements circulated through the city contain his picture in life 
size. 



DR. DOWIE'S WORK. 23 



His vanity seems unbounded, and is only equaled by his ambi- 
tion to be a great leader, and his capacity for building air 
castles. Take this farce that he calls, the organization of the 
"Christian Catholic church." What is there to it? Absolutely 
nothing but Dr. Dowie and his family. The organization was 
preceded by two, so called, ''Conferences." The first consisted 
almost entirely of a discourse from Dr. Dowie to prove the contin- 
uance of the tl Apostolic Office " to the present time. The second 
conference consisted mainly in a still further discussion of the 
"Apostolic Office," some statements from Dr. Dowie as to what 
he believed, desired, and intended to do, and closing with a 
resolution, a part of which is as follows: 

Resolved: That this conference of believers interested in the 
organization of the Christian Catholic Church, hereby declares, first: 
Their agreement with the general principles of organization set forth 
»by the Rev John Alex. Dowie in his address at the conference held 
in Zion Tabernacle No. 2, on January 22nd, as printed in the "Leaves 
of Healing, " for January 31st, pages 260 to 270. * * * * * 
Third: That the Rev. John Alex. Dowie, as the Overseer, called by 
God to that position, shall, it is unanimously agreed, proceed to the 
enrolment of .members. ' ' 

It is readily seen that the whole affair is planned to work to the 
interest of one man. The idea of the "Apostolic Office" opens up the 
door to "General Overseer," the "co-operative" plan, and the tith- 
ing system are, to bring the money into the hands of the l ' General 
Overseer;" the "City of Zion" idea, with its great temple, furnishes 
a kingdon and centre of power for the Pope. 

The readers' attention is called particularly to the 

CONSTITUTION OF THE} CHURCH, 

which the "Leaves of Healing" says, was listened to "amidst pro- 
found silence. " It certainly is a most profound (?) document. One 
thing surely can be said of it, that it is absolutely unique — nothing 
like it in all the earth. The first part consists of a declaration "in 
the name of the Lord Jesus, in the power of the Holy Spirit," that 
Rev. John Alex. Dowie believes himself ' 'called as General Over- 
seer of this flock, not only in this place, but in all the cities and vil- 
lages and states and counties where persons have applied or shall apply 



24 DR. DOWIE'S WORK. 

for fellowship. ' ' The rest of it consists of a prayer by the ' ' General 
Overseer" for the "Christian Catholic Church, " that it might be en- 
dowed with the nine extraordinary gifts of the Spirit and with love* 
and a request that all the people say Amen. 

What a stupendous fraud. However, it is to hoped that some 
good may come from it after all. The public mind, for some } T ears, 
has been in a feverish state on this subject of faith healing; the blood 
has become impure with extreme and fanatical notions, and now it 
seems to have come to a head, in Chicago, like a great carbuncle, so 
that all that is necessary to give relief is to lance the sore and let 
the poison out. 

This is a bit of surgery that is not very pleasant, but, if those 
who are more capable will not, I will try. 

To do this, about all that is necessary, is to bring before 
the minds of the people the facts in the case. If the public- 
could know of the thousands of disappointed people that are turned 
away no better than when they came, they would not be so inter- 
ested in the few hypochondriacs that are relieved by mind cure. 

To help in this work, let me ask the reader, who may have some 
knowledge ot the practical workings of this teaching, to write me 
giving particulars pro or con. 

Address 556 West Sixty-third Street, Chicago, 111. 

This book will be increased by 32 pages more in a few days. It 
will be bound so that those who have this can buy the additional 
pages separate. 

The subject of faith healing will be further discussed and the 
exposition of this " Divine Healing " business continued. 



